Apocalypse Saga: Precurser to Fate
by onyx-hime-sama
Summary: AC199. In the wake of the Gundam Wars and the Marimaia Incident, disturbing rumers begin to spread...amassing of weapons and production of gundanium by certain militant groups. It's a race against time to prevent war. Part one: Preventers under the command of Trowa infiltrate a base. But things fail to go smoothly when a stowaway is discovered.


Greetings Gundam Wing fanatics!

Well, here we go...yet another of Onyx-hime-sama's humble works. And this particular story holds a special place in the author's heart. This has the distinction of being my very first fiction piece. With that there are a few author's notes.

This is a Trowa/Cathy fic. However i wrote this story looooooong before that heretical book Episode Zero was written. In my opinion it does not count and never will. This is written on the premise that Trowa and Cathy are not related. Also, this is my first writing, written almost fifteen years ago. I have had time to improve my writting since then. However, I decided to keep it true to the original. So if the plot seems to have some loop holes or improper grammer Gomen Nasai! And lastly, this started as a one-shot that evolved. It is part a saga.

The author of this poor fic does not own any part of Gundam wing or any anime. This was written strictly to appease the muse. And because I can't stand leaving these poor boys without a happy ending. Americajin desu yo! Must have my happy endings!

Without further ado, on with the show!

Prologue

After Colony 199. Four years after the Gundam Wars.Prime Minister Relena Darlian had begun to court the space colonies in hopes of a True Peace accord. The Colonies seemed to be open to such ideas, and, as a consequence, all but five of the colonies had joined together in a joint effort to bring about lasting peace. It was assumed to be only a matter of time before the remainder joined the Colonial Coalition. Suddenly, the Five Holdouts, as they became known, began showing hostility towards the Earth Sphere Unified Nation and especially towards Prime Minister Darlian. In the face of the colonies' open hostilities the earth began to lose all hope for complete unification. Still, the Prime Minister maintained an optimistic outlook trusting in diplomacy to resolve the issue. Then terrifying rumors reached Relena Darlian's ears.The Five Holdouts were supposedly amassing massive amounts of gundanium alloy. The reasons were clouded in secrecy, but many feared the worst. As these rumors disseminated, many called for the government to take action. In the midst of boiling tempers, rampant accusations, and calls to arms, Relena Darlian maintained her stance that she would make decisions that will in no way confirm or condone any action leading to so great a loss of life. She would avoid war at all costs. But could that war _**be**_ avoided ?

 _ **Part One:**_

 _ **Precurser to Fate**_

The night was black and silent as the lonesome silhouette crept away from the various trailers and tents that made up the circus company. As he came out from under the shadow of the trees, the artificial lighting that L2 affected at night threw his features into sharp relief.

The silhouette proved to be young man of about nineteen. The silvery light illuminated the white pair of jeans and a green turtle-neck. The young man was wearing. As he approached a pick-up truck hidden in the shadows, he stopped suddenly.

He squinted his green eyes into the darkness, instinctively reaching for his semi-automatic. _What was that?_

"Trowa?"

Trowa exhaled silently, dropping his hand from his holster. _How does Heero not get caught?_ He pushed his chestnut bangs from his eyes as he unslung his duffle and dropped it to the ground.

"Cathy. I'm sorry I woke you." He turned to face the silhouette of a slim girl as she approached him with her usual cat-like grace.

"You didn't wake me." The lithe brunette of about nineteen glided out of the shadows. "I couldn't sleep so I went for a walk." Her lovely lavender eyes fell on his duffle bag. It was fully packed. _It's the middle of the night. Where's he going?_

"No..." Her eyes widened as a sudden realization hit her. "Not again, Trowa, please..."

"Cathy, I have to go." It was all he said.

Trowa would have preferred dealing with a screaming, hysterical Cathy. He would rather have dealt with ranting and raving. At least he would have known _**how**_ to deal with that.

Instead, she simply asked in a small whimper, "Why?" and began to cry.

Never had Trowa seen her that upset. Oh sure, she had cried before, but not like this. He was at a loss for the few words he usually had, so he allowed his actions to speak for him. He gathered the distraught girl into his arms. As he stood there holding a trembling Cathy, it struck him how truly petite she was.

And yet he knew she was not frail. Every ounce of flesh on her was well toned muscle. He had seen her perform tricks of dexterity that astounded him, and he knew she could throw a knife that would pin a fly at thirty feet. She was one of the strongest people he knew. Yet, now she seemed so frail, so vulnerable.

"Cathy, I have to do this. Not only to keep the colonies and Earth safe. But to keep you safe too." His quiet tones broke through her haze of tears.

She looked up at him, tears streaking down her face. "But why _you_?You ve done your duty to man-kind, Trowa. You rescued us all in the Gundam Wars. You came to the rescue yet again during the Marimaia incident. What now? A full-time Preventers posting? We were promised peace to live. I have yet to see that. The last thing I want is to receive news that you ve been shot down in the street or, worse yet, ripped apart in some stupid mobile suit..."

Cathy was unable to continue. The mental images she had just painted had caused her to dissolve into tears again. When she had calmed again, Trowa tilted her head so that their eyes met.

"Cathy, listen to me. I _**will**_ be back. This is my home." Trowa took some thing from around his neck and held it out to her. Dangling from a solid gold chain looking like it had seen goodness knows what kind of action, was a cross. "Here."

Cathy drew in a sharp breath. She recognized this cross. It was the only thing Trowa valued. He had told her once that it was the last link he had to his family.

"But-"

"Keep it safe for me. I'll be back for it."

Cathy cradled the cross in her hand. Drying her eyes, she clasped it around her neck. She watched as Trowa loaded his duffle bag into the back of his pick-up. He turned back to his trailer to get something. Cathy's lavender eyes narrowed as she followed his tall form.

Her hand closed around the pendent. "Not this time, Trowa Barton. If you have to go, then _**I m**_ going too."

"...you will proceed to Colony cluster L4-561. We are getting disturbing reports of a weapon the Holdouts are constructing. We need to confirm the rumors and to assess the situation. You will penetrate the colony s defenses and determine the extent of their forces and the status of their arms. This is an information gathering mission. However, should you discover it more beneficial to our cause to destroy the base, then you are authorized to use deadly force."

"We have the virus designed by Heero uploaded. Are there any other orders, Lady Une?" Trowa made eye contact with the Preventers Commander and Chief.

"That's all. You have a go. Good luck."

"Acknowledged, HQ. Will rendezvous at the designated RV point."

"Until then, orders are to observe strict radio silence, gentlemen."

"Copy that, HQ."

"Excellent. Preventers Headquarters over and out."

Trowa punched in the proper coordinates and then sat back in the pilot's seat.

He sighed. _Cathy was right. Will I ever have the peace and freedom to live a normal life? Have a home, a family._ His green eyes popped open wide as he realized the direction his thoughts were taking. He was surprised at himself. As long as he could remember, he had been a loner, a soldier preferring his solitude. But now a family?!

He shook his head incredulously. _Since when have I started wanting that? Reality check, Trowa. You are a Gundam pilot. You will never have a peaceful existence._

This was the life he knew, a life that consists of missions, danger, and intrigue. It was what he had trained for. He was a soldier. Sure, he had thought about having a family in those rare quiet times when he allowed himself to feel and be human. _But_ _how could I expose a wife and children to certain danger? There s always the possibility that I might die. How can I expect Cathy to give up the peace of mind she should have for her husband like that?_ His eyes widened again, startled. When did he start thinking of Cathy in that way? _I must really be in a mood today._ With a sigh, he checked the autopilot and re-entered the cab.

"Man, Wufei, where did you dig this shuttle up. Talk about lap of luxury." Duo Maxwell ran his eyes around the cab of the shuttle.

"From Preventer Po. And don t you spill anything on those seats. That woman threatened me within an inch of my life if this crate was so much as scratched."

"How'd you rate?"

"If you must know, I called her by her name."

Everyone in the cab began to laugh. Trowa leaned against the wall shaking his head at the hi-jinks of his friends.

"You know, Trowa, when you asked if I wanted to spend some time with some old friends, this wasn't quite what I had in mind." Quatre s sarcasm split the silence. He fiddled with the leather strap on his appropriated uniform, and a tiny smile formed on Trowa s lips.

"C'mon, Quatre, where's your sense of adventure?", said a man wearing a jumpsuit slightly reminiscent of a priest's garb. Duo Maxwell looked exceedingly comfortable in his seat next to the storage closet in the back end of the cab of the shuttle.

His hair fell down his back in a long braid, and he sat with his feet propped up in a devil may care attitude.

Chang Wufei snorted from his seat across from Duo but said nothing. He froze abruptly and tilted his head as if listening intently. The Chinese Preventer was staring intently at the storage closet, his brown-black eyes narrowed.

"My _**sense of adventure**_ ", continued Quatre eyeing Wufei, "took a nose-dive for the nearest airlock at that last checkpoint."

"Awww c'mon, Q-man, you got to learn to live a little. Besides, it wasn't my fault that they decided to leave us in a small room for three hours and no reading material. They shouldn't put those smoke detectors so close to the ground, and they _**definitely**_ shouldn't put those sprinkler thing-a-ma-bopies in their computer rooms."

Trowa's lips pulled up at the edges, and Quatre laughed outright. Wufei just growled.

"Idiot. Will you _**kindly**_ remember that we are on a mission for the Preventers and not on some joy-ride? Watching the way you behave makes me wonder how you ever completed a successful mission on your own." Wufei glared daggers at the lacidailacidaisacal god of death.

Duo threw his head back and laughed. "You re just mad because I ruined your best silk kimono!"

Chang's eyes narrowed at the jovial American. He had been forced to change into an exceptionally uncomfortable black uniform after Duo had set off that confounded sprinkler. And he was not about to forgive the terminally social Gundam pilot. Wufei opened his mouth to reply when his attention jerked back to the closet.

"What s the matter Wufei? Got a crick in your neck? That's the second time..." But the long-haired Gundam pilot never got to finish his statement.

"Duo, Shut up!" Wufei growled. His eyes were intently fixed on that closet.

"You shushed me!" Duo motioned at Trowa and Quatre, "He shushed me!"

"Duo, _**shut it**_!"

This time Duo shut up, and this time they all heard it. With a sudden smooth motion, Chang leaped from his seat and yanked open the door. All the pilots were on their feet, hands on guns. Wufei stood, gun drawn and safety off, over the sprawled, unconscious form of a cramped girl. The brunette lay on the floor, a golden cross pendent hanging askew from her neck. Her lean form was accentuated by her black tank and spandex pants.

"Talk about your _**de-luxe**_ model space craft. I wonder if they all come with girls in closets! Now I know why you spend so much time _**alone**_ working on these ships!" Duo jabbed Wufei in the ribs. Chang glared at the American.

"Cathy." Trowa stared at the girl s small still form _. Is she breathing? Please let her be alive!_ He began to push his way past the others to get to her. Quatre looked at Cathy with alarm.

"Ya know, Wu-man, if you were actually to fire that thing in here you would probably puncture a hole in the hull. All the air would leak out. And I don't know about you but I think suffocation is a pretty uncool way to die." Duo inspected his nails casually.

"I am aware of that, idiot. What exactly is _**she**_ doing here?" Wufei sneered at Duo, but put up his gun.

Duo rolled his eyes. _What a stupid thing to ask_. Especially since Duo was just as clueless as Wufei. "I don t know,", Duo bit out sarcastically, "but when she comes to, I'll ask her."

Cathy chose that moment to stir. Opening her eyes, she attempted to get up, but failed miserably, passing out. Trowa moved faster than any of the others. He jumped over all three Gundam pilots. He swept her up into his arms and laid her on a bench.

The look of naked concern on his face painted a picture worth a thousand words _. How long has she spent in that closet?_ Trowa had no idea but it was too long to suit him.She was deathly pale.

Trowa was thoroughly entrenched in his concerns and failed to notice the others gathering around.

Quatre had been watching his friend in silence very interested by what he read on Trowa's face. And Quatre was not the only one who noticed the strange expression. Duo raised an eyebrow at Quatre as if to say _did you see it too?_ Quatre gave a barely perceptible nod of his head.

After a moment, Trowa covered Catherine with a blanket, rose and headed towards the cockpit and, more importantly, the radio.

"Trowa, can I talk to you for a minute?" Quatre motioned Trowa aside.

"Quatre, she can't stay. She's a civilian, and she hasn't been trained for military missions." Trowa started in before Quatre had a chance to say anything.

"I agree that she hasn't had the training that you or I underwent. I admit that I'm as concerned for her safety as you are. But, Trowa, you know we can't contact anyone. We're under orders for strict radio silence. And we are already past the point of no return. We are deep in enemy territory." Quatre glanced back at the sleeping girl.

Trowa just raised an eyebrow. "I'll send her back with Duo."

Quatre turned back to face Trowa. "We don't have time to stop and put her off ship. This mission is planned down to the minute. And we need everyone. I don t like it anymore than you do. We have no choice but to press on regardless. She's going to have to go on the mission with us."

 _Like heck I m going to allow her to be killed on this mission!_ Trowa looked away, and his fists clenched. He wouldn't risk her life. Glancing back at her lithe form, he wracked his tactical brains, trying to make it work. _I can't_ _believe it_. For the first time since his training as a Gundam pilot, he was seriously considering disobeying a direct order.

 _Quatre is right…_ Trowa's perfect soldier whispered. There was just too much at stake. He could not compromise the mission. Although he wasn't sure it wasn't already too late. He exhaled the breath he had been holding.

 _Catherine has talents that I've seen in no other woman._ He knew how accurate she was with a throwing knife. _Or a gun for that matter. I made sure of that._ But she was his Cathy, and that made it all the more difficult.

 _His Cathy_. He repeated the words in his mind and marveled at what two simple words could do to a man's heart. He left the cab, his human side and the yearning to protect the woman who- well he did not know who exactly Cathy was to him- warring with the perfect soldier in him who told him to obey all orders.

Shaking his head, Quatre returned to his seat just in time to catch the tail end of the argument between Wufei and Duo.

"...it was bad enough to wake up this morning and realize that my coffee maker was broken. Then I discover that you were going on this mission. Why did it have to be you, of all people? What gods did I offend?"

"It's not my fault that I messed up your blasted carpet just after you spent four hours brushing it, Wuffie. Hey, Quatre, why're you grinning ?" Duo shot over his shoulder.

"Why is it the seemingly unemotional ones that fall in love the hardest?" That got the attention of both the other pilots.

"What do you mean, Winner?" Wufei eyes narrowed.

"Oh, nothing."

"I get your meanin , Q-man. Did you notice the way he looked at her? Trowa's head over heels and I don t think he knows it yet. I hope for his sake she feels the same way."

" _ **Love**_!" Wufei spat contemptuously, glaring at Duo. "Love is for fools and weaklings. A snare set by a weaker gender all to garner power over the stronger. Well, I will _**never**_ be caught."

"You shouldn't knock it before you try it." Duo grinned impishly. "Being married isn't as bad as you make it sound, Wufei. I mean, Hilde feeds me six square meals a day..."

"That poor woman!" Wufei shook his head in disgust.

"...my laundry done for free, and all the backrubs I could ever want."

"Marriage has rotted what's left of your brain, Maxwell!"

Quatre winked at Duo and he grinned. He walked up to Wufei and put a brotherly arm around Wufei's shoulder. Chang promptly removed it, but, undaunted, Duo continued his assault.

"I'd be careful what you say, Wu-man. Never underestimate the power of a woman over a man. Now, before you go 'women are weak -ing'" , said Duo, interrupting what was sure to be the longest tirade in Wufei's illustrious career of chauvinism. "Let me tell you somethin.", Duo spoke in a secretive whisper. "One day, you'll be going along trying to blow up a base- mindin' your own business, when suddenly you hear _**beee-uu-teeful**_ voice ordering you to freeze. How exasperating. You turn around to give her a piece of your mind and stop short. There she is- the most gorgeous creature on Earth or in the colonies, with the most attractive...er... _**accoutrements**_... you've ever seen. You fight hand to hand and you manage to grab her weapons. But she still kicks the ever-living crud out of you. You pick yourself up off the ground and bada-boom bada-bing, before you know it, wedding bells and the pitter-patter little chauvinists. Awwwwe, how sweet. I have just one request. Can I be best man?!"

"Idiot. First, it will be an exceptionally cold day in a traditionally sweltering place before I find a woman who is even close to my equal. Second, I would not condescend to fight an opponent weaker than myself (which all women are) and, third, I do not get caught off my guard! Therefore your rhapsodizing is pointless! Any more senseless sappiness I must endure?!"

"It'll happen, old buddy. Trust me. Sooner or later, it will happen."

"Do me a favor, _**old buddy**_.", Wufei gritted between his teeth. "Hold your breath until then."

With that, the Chinese Pilot stalked off to a dark corner, growling and mumbling to himself about stupidity and long, slow, and very painful deaths.

Duo just grinned.

At the end of an hour, Trowa had come to a compromise between training and humanity. _The orders will be kept_. But Trowa would keep Cathy close to him on the mission. He would be absolutely certain that nothing would happen to her. _Issue resolved_.

Trowa rejoined the pilots in the cab and sat next to Catherine. He reached up a hand and brushed a lock of hair from her eyes. It was so soft slightly cool to his touch and, as it ran through his fingers, he wondered at the beauty of it. He was surprised at the feelings that rose within him. Surprised and a little uncertain.

He had never experienced this before and had no idea what he was going to do about it.

Two hours later, the slender brunette sleeping on the bench began to stir. She groaned as she came fully awake, and her body made it painfully known that that closet was not made for humans to ride in. For one thing there had been very little oxygen exchange through the seals around the closet door. It had been extremely cramped in there. That, and the excitement of stowing away, made sleep quite elusive.

She yawned and stretched, and a thrill ran through her. She had done it. She had actually stowed away on the shuttle, gotten past Trowa Barton, and gotten away with it.

That thought made her want to giggle and clap her hands. Now all she had to do was convince Trowa that she would not be a liability. _On the bright side_ , she thought, _they can't send me home. Whatever they're doing is so important that they can't stop to force me to return home. I'm stuck_.

"Cathy." She looked in the direction of the sound of her name.

"Trowa." She looked into his green eyes, smiled, and felt warm all over. Her eyes widened. _What in the world is going on?_ She did not have time to dwell on the thought.

"Yo, Cat, ya feeling better?" Duo waved from his seat.

She tore her lavender eyes from Trowa's strangely intoxicating gaze. Stretching, she smiled at Duo. "Feeling fine, thanks. Next time I stow away, I'll pick a more comfortable spot."

Duo just smirked.

Wufei snorted something derogatory under his breath.

Duo was grinning again. "Man! This is going to be a blast!"

She dangled her legs off the side of the bench. Dizziness assailed her and she waited a moment to regain her equilibrium. "I'm beginning to think climbing into that particular closet wasn't the smartest thing I've ever done."

Wufei sneered at the brunette from across the shuttle cab. "If you had any _**intelligence**_ at all, you would not have come. Your stowing away complicates what would normally be a simple mission. Now we have the problem of _**babysitting**_ a woman. This mission will be dangerous enough with Maxwell coming along."

"Hey...!" But Duo was completely ignored.

Cathy felt Trowa tense and she glanced at him. The look on his face spelled bloody murder. She reached over and squeezed his arm until he looked at her. _Let me handle this, Trowa_ her eyes conveyed. He understood and stepped away from her.

Rising from her seat, she stared at Wufei for the space of ten heart beats before she responded quietly. "Not this woman. I am fully capable of taking care of myself."

Wufei shook his head in a patronizing way, as if Catherine were a small child who had said something extremely foolish. "I doubt that. I have yet to meet a woman who is capable of taking care of herself."

Her eyes narrowed as she glared at the Preventer. "How do you know that a woman won't be a valuable ally? How do you know that that woman won't one day save your flea-bitten carcass? Or for that matter, Pony-tail Boy, that she won't kill you where you stood just for the sheer pleasure of it."

"Ha! She is a woman. What more could she be but troublesome?" he stated matter-of-factly. "Besides, she'd never get that close." He was content that he had won the argument. He leaned back against his seat daring her to argue.

 _ **THOCK**_!

Before he could blink, there was a stiletto sticking out of the vinyl less than a hair's breadth from his left ear. It was still oscillating from the force of impact.

Catherine, with sleek cat-like movements, took three steps and leaned over him placing one hand on the wall to the right side of his head. The other, she laid on the handle of the dagger. Her nose nearly brushed his as her lavender eyes met his dark ones.

"Who said anything about getting close?" She smiled sweetly.

Her tone was low, and full of promise as she pushed back, ripping the knife out of the seat in one smooth motion. Duo let out a whoop.

"Yo, Cat! You throw knives!?"

"Uh-huh." Catherine smiled at Maxwell and nodded. "I throw them at Trowa all the time, Duo."

"And she's quite good," Quatre added jovially.

Duo's eyes popped open in awe. "You knew she _**threw**_ knives at Trowa. And lived to tell about it? And you didn't tell _**me**_?!"

"Your immaturity might be the reason no one informed you, Maxwell," Wufei growled.

Eyes flashing, Cathy whipped around and glared at the pompous Gundam pilot.

"Pay no attention to that ornery cuss. He s just hormonal cause he missed his coffee this morning." Duo waved her over to a seat next to him. "So can you teach me to throw knives like that!?"

Wufei watched Catherine turn and walk towards Duo and Quatre, this time wisely keeping his mouth shut. He folded his arms across his chest, leaned back, and to all appearances closed his eyes and went to sleep.

In truth, he was watching the three friends beneath cracked eyelids. There was absolutely no sign of those knives. He had no clue where she could have hidden them. Her spaghetti strap tank-top and spandex pants simply left no hiding places for weapons. Given all consideration, he just might be wrong about _**this**_ woman but he would never admit it out loud.

It seemed to Quatre that a tense moment had passed without bloodshed. For which he was immensely grateful. They would need Wufei unharmed. Quatre did not really think that Catherine would hurt Wufei, but then again neither had he expected her to throw that knife.

Quatre grinned. Exposure to a spunky woman was exactly what Wufei needed. The Arabian just hoped Trowa didn t take Cathy s flirting with Wufei wrong. That is if you could call using him as a knife-target flirting'.

Thinking of Trowa, Quatre glanced towards the silent pilot, and his smile grew. His friend was leaning against the wall, arms crossed, with a genuine smile on his face. He'd seen the exchange between Cathy and Wufei. Quatre noticed that Trowa never took his green eyes off of her.

"Hey, Quatre, look what Cat gave me!" Duo waved three stilettos in the air. He made like he was a knife-thrower extraordinaire.

"That s great Duo, just don't use me for a target." Quatre chuckled.

Duo hefted the knives and made like he knew what he doing; making Wufei very anxious. "Maxwell, put those things down before you hurt somebody!"

Duo grinned at Wufei mischievously. "No! Don t you dare... I'm warning you, idiot, don't throw those knives at me! _**Whoa**_! All right, that s it! Give me those things! _**Owowow! Hey, OW! Duo, NO BITING..!."**_

Quatre was laughing so hard he nearly fell out of his seat. Catherine stood there laughing, holding her aching sides.

"Cathy."

Catherine looked around and made eye contact with Trowa. He motioned for her to precede him into the cockpit.

"But shouldn't I supervise?" She gestured in Duo's general direction.

Trowa's eyes took on a mischievous glint. "The type of supervision they need you couldn't give them. C'mon."

They entered the cockpit and Trowa turned to face Catherine.

"Cathy..." But Cathy would not listen. She could not even meet his eyes.

"Before you say anything, Trowa, I need to tell you that I fully intend on being a burden to no-one, and on pulling my own weight. I just couldn't stay at home, and wait until you came. I'm tired of being left behind with a simple I'll be back ."

"Cathy..."

"I realize that I could cause trouble for you and that I might need _**babysitting**_..."

"Catherine..."

"And that my actions might be viewed as impetuous, but I came prepared. I won't be useless so please let me stay! Please, Trowa..."

Trowa put a hand under her chin and made her meet his eyes. He also gently put a finger to her lips.

"Now," he made eye contact with her. "Do I have your attention?"

She nodded. He removed his finger and sighed.

"The mission is to infiltrate a rebel base. We are to get in, upload a virus into the computer, and assess the status of their army. We are also to evaluate the status of the weapon that's under construction. If at all possible, we are to leave the base intact. If it becomes apparent that we can't do that, we will act accordingly. Once the information is on disc, Wufei will take it from there. You, Catherine, will go with me."

"So you're not mad at me?" Cathy's eyes were big as saucers. "You're going to let me go on the mission?"

"I really don't have any other option. I can't leave you on this shuttle alone; we're going to have to leave it on the station unguarded." Trowa grew silent and turned his back to her.

"Trowa?" Catherine eyed his back uncertainly.

"I wish you hadn't come, Cathy. This isn't a game."

She reached out and touched his arm forcing him to turn and meet her eyes.

"I know that this mission is dangerous, Trowa, And I know this is no game. I never assumed anything different. I promise I won't get in the way of you finishing your mission."

To her surprise, Trowa reached a hand up and caressed her cheek. "That's the least of my worries. I don't want to see you get hurt."

She was profoundly touched that he cared so much for her safety. "I promise I'll be careful." She whispered.

Catherine gazed deeply into his green eyes. She was losing herself and, oddly enough, did not care. There was only her and Trowa. She stood there paralyzed as his lips descended towards hers. Her heart throbbed so hard, she thought it would pound through her chest, and her eyes closed of their own volition

Both of them started at the insistent beeping of the pilot s console. Trowa growled and glared at the offending machinery. He reluctantly turned away from Cathy and looked at the screen. The circular grey and black instillation that was the base loomed closer.

"We've arrived."

Trowa checked the chambers of his automatic as he reviewed his plans for the team.

"All right. My job is to infiltrate the ranks, and get the low-down on the location of the computer room. I also need to gain information on the army itself. We'll split up and plan to meet up later.

Quatre, Wufei, you are responsible to take out all the alarms and security in the sectors previously discussed. The super weapon will also fall under your purview. You are to examine it and if necessary, sabotage it.

Duo, you're responsible for planting explosives at key strategic points on base. We'll leave the distraction that will allow our escape in your capable hands."

"Gotcha, Trowa. I'll take good care of you."

"Oh I'm _so_ glad you said that, Maxwell. It s _deeply_ comforting." Wufei rolled his eyes. Duo stuck his tongue out at the ornery Chinese.

Trowa quirked an eyebrow at his friends shenanigans. "Duo, I also want you to take Cathy with you."

Cathy's lavender eyes widened. "But, I thought-," she interrupted.

"It is vital that I infiltrate the ranks of the common soldiers, and I can't do that if you are with me, Catherine." Trowa explained. "However, for the second part of the operation, Duo, I want you to leave Cathy at the rendezvous point with the virus Heero created. At that point, she will go with me. She and I will deal with the computer. Once Quatre and Wufei are finished with their assignments, they are to go to the hanger and meet you, Duo. Questions?"

After seeing that there were no questions, Trowa gave the final instruction to move out. Quatre and Wufei moved to the supplies.

Trowa caught Duo's arm as the others prepared to head out.

"Duo, I've got something else I need you to do." Trowa winced as he furtively glanced at Wufei's back. "The shuttle..."

"I understand. This crate can't fall into enemy hands. I'll make sure it doesn't."

Duo grabbed his bag and ran after Wufei as he left the shuttle cab. "Yo, Wuffie, wait up!"

Duo screeched to an abrupt halt as Wufei drew his automatic. "Whoa, man! Holster that thing. You coulda shot me! Geeze, relax!" Duo snapped his fingers in a sudden realization. " _ **That's**_ what you need, relaxation. I could set you up with a really good masseuse. Ya know, I got connections, and I hear Sally gives one _**heck**_ of a backrub..."

" _ **Maxwell!"**_

Quatre, Wufei, and Catherine were already headed for the two smaller crafts stowed in the rear hanger. Trowa was to take the larger shuttle into the base as a new recruit. He was to fly straight into the base, bold as paint, leave the shuttle, and go about his business.

Duo was entrenched in the cockpit, fixing the control panel. Trowa wanted to be sure that no one would succeed in hacking into their on-board computer. The last thing he needed was someone meddling. That's where Duo came in. He could rig a fail-safe device to keep people who are tempted to meddle from doing exactly that.

Trowa was just putting the finishing touches on his purloined uniform of black on black. There was a bit of color on the sleeve of his right arm where a band of cloth was fastened.

He was going in style. He was taking the place of Lieutenant Jake Rand, special ops. Lt. Rand had fairly high clearance, which would give Trowa access to the computer rooms, and Rand also had an impressive record. Better yet, he had only recently been assigned to this facility. Nobody knew what he looked like only that he was one of the most prominent soldiers in the special ops unit known as Venom

From what Intelligence had on them, they were an elite force of special troops with commando training. Fully capable soldiers, their training included infiltration, assassination, kidnapping, and terrorist type activities. They reminded Trowa of Khushrinada s Specials. Ultimate soldiers totally, fanatically loyal to the cause.

Trowa had just finished strapping on his shoulder holster, when he heard applause. He whirled around gun in hand safety off.

Cathy stood leaning against the door smirking. Her eyes looked him up and down in an appreciative gaze. Trowa slipped his gun into the holster and turned towards her, curious.

"Impressive." She murmured, giving his appearance a critical once over. "But it'll never work. You're too much a circus clown." She stopped and giggled.

"What?" Trowa frowned.

"Your arm badge is on the wrong arm. I'm betting pretty much everybody else wears that on the left." Her lavender eyes sparkled.

"How...?" _could you know that?_ Trowa blinked and glanced down at his right arm. Sure enough, he had the insignia on the wrong arm. _And how could I have made such an elementary mistake?_

Catherine grinned. "Quatre."

 _I''m getting sloppy._ Trowa shook his head as he adjusted the armband. _I've got to keep my mind on the mission and not on..._ He sneaked a peek in Cathy's direction ... _other things._ He gave her one of his rare smiles. "Aren't you supposed to be somewhere?"

"Duo's not on board, yet. Besides, Quatre and Wufei need to leave first. It gave me time to get some things I left behind."

She walked over to her duffle and pulled out three flat throwing knives and tucked them into her boot. She secured a coil of rope at her hip, and she strapped a bullwhip opposite the rope.

"Is Wufei always so uptight?" she shot over her shoulder as she loaded up.

Trowa shook his head. "Only when Duo's along."

She grinned, wiping the imaginary dirt off her hands, and sighed with satisfaction.

She turned and collided into a solid wall of muscle, which prompted Trowa to put his arms around her to steady her. She looked up into his green eyes.

She watched as his eyes narrowed in determination and her breath caught. _He's never looked at me like this before_. The words on her lips died unspoken as she lost herself in the heat of his gaze.

He gently brought his hand to her face and ran his thumb across her trembling bottom lip. Her breath caught in her throat the moment she understood his intention.

"Trowa..." she murmured breathlessly as his lips took hers. He kissed her gently, like she was something infinitely precious. She sensed the underlying passion he kept in check; she also sensed his desperation. _He's afraid. He's afraid_ _ **for me**_ With that realization, came the overwhelming urge to comfort him, to reassure him. She threw her arms around him and kissed him with everything that was in her.

When she drew away, they were both breathless. She smiled sweetly into his eyes and launched a very satisfying kick into one of Trowa s shins.

Trowa yelped and grabbed the bruised appendage. "What was that for?!", asked the X-Gundam pilot, looking injured in more ways than one.

"For waiting until _**now**_ to do that! Ooh! Men! Leave it up to a man to pick the time before going into certain danger and almost definite death to show their feelings for a girl. Or even demonstrating emotion period. Now, you listen to me, Trowa Barton!" She backed him into a corner pinning him with a finger to his chest. "You had better come back alive and in one piece, because now we have unfinished business to attend to." With that she whirled and walked out without a backwards glance.

Trowa sighed as he watched the slim attractive figure until long after it had disappeared. _She's absolutely beautiful._ His face fell. _She deserves better than me. She deserves happiness, not the fear that I would give her._

"You got yourself one dynamic lady there, Trowa."

Trowa whipped around to see Duo standing in the cockpit door wiping his hands on a rag.

"Duo, if you make one crack ."

"Why is it everyone automatically assumes that I do nothing but joke around?" Duo quirked an eyebrow at Trowa making pointed eye contact. "I know it's none of my business, Trowa, but have you decided what you're gonna do about your feelings for her?"

His face troubled, Trowa looked away from the braided mechanic. "No."

Shaking his head, Duo sighed, for once serious. "You know, Trowa, I was saving this speech for Heero. Might still use it on him if I can tack him to a chair. The fact is we Gundam pilots will never live lives that are considered normal by society s definition. We have too much blood on our hands. We've seen too much bloodshed, been trained in the art of war. And peace is a foreign concept to us. But when it comes down to it, even a soldier is entitled to some happiness. I thank the Big Guy upstairs every day for Hilde and what she what she means to me. She doesn't question who I am or what I've done. She just loves me."

Duo glanced at Trowa and held his gaze for several heartbeats.

"It all comes down to choice, Trowa. Relena's done her best to give us peace, but you are the only one who can make the choice to accept the gift she's given you. This is what we fought for. Man, from one soldier to another, you'll regret it every day of your life if you choose to pass Cathy up." Duo pointed towards the door Cathy exited through. " _ **She**_ _**is worth it**_."

Trowa could not believe what he was hearing.

Then just as suddenly as Duo turned serious, he was back to his old self. "Well, back to business. The ship's jury-rigged. You aren't gonna tell Wufei about this, are ya?" Duo grimaced and rubbed his neck as if he could feel the cold of a steel sword. "That could get messy."

"Let's just hope that it is an unneeded precaution."

With a careless salute, Duo sailed out of the shuttle.

 _It all comes down to choice_. Trowa looked after Duo, amazed. _Can he read my mind?_ His mind immediately flashed to Cathy. _Is there hope for Cathy and me?_

Thinking of Cathy brought back memories of his kissing her. He had stunned both of them when he had done it. He did not regret it; and that surprised him. He had been so frustrated with the interruption earlier in the cockpit that all he could think was _**Finish it!**_ And now her beautiful face and features filled his mind and drove him to distraction.

He shook his head and forced himself to focus on the mission at hand. _I don't have time for this now._ He took the pilot's seat and monitored both of the smaller crafts progress. Quatre and Wufei with their ten- minute head start were already well hidden in the asteroid belt around the base. Duo and Cathy s shuttle was headed to the right-rear docking bay. According to the schematics pilfered by an agent with code name Phoenix, that docking bay was used exclusively for mechanics.

"Unidentified shuttle, please make your identity known as well as your destination and intentions. Failure to respond to this directive will result in your immediate destruction." The voice came over the com on the dash.

 _Well, it's all or nothing. Here goes._

Trowa sighed and adjusted his thrusters to take him straight in. _Duo had better take good care of Catherine_. "He flipped a switch on the com. Base XJ-491, this is Lt. Rand..."

Wufei and Quatre sat peacefully in the cockpit of their tiny spacecraft. With Duo and Catherine out of the picture, the atmosphere was pretty sedate. Boring was more like it

Quatre eyed Wufei speculatively. That Chinese was wound tighter than a watch spring. _I know Wufei hates Duo, but things just aren't as exciting without him_.

"Wufei, would you like some tea?"

The Chinese Preventer growled a negative under his breath.Quatre hid his amused grin behind his tea cup. He watched Chang out of the corner of his eye. The Chinese Preventer was going over a post flight checklist for the fourth time since they had hidden in these asteroids. He raised an eyebrow. _Sometimes I'd really like to get in that guy's head. That s a post-flight list he's checking off. You can't do half that stuff until the shuttle s turned off._

"Um, Wufei, are you sure you don't want some tea? It just might help you to relax."

"Look, Winner, for the last time I don't want any tea. I _**am**_ relaxed! If I were anymore relaxed, I'd be dead! Maxwell's scenario was entirely insane, and I do not want a backrub from Sally Po or anybody else for that matter, and furthermore..!" Wufei's ranting continued on for some minutes, slowly degenerating into general references to injustice, braided idiots, and cosmic unfairness.

Quatre snorted, desperately trying to stifle a laugh. _I never said anything about Duo. Give him thirty seconds more. He'll figure it out_.

Wufei's ranting cut-off abruptly.

Quatre took a quick sip of tea. He was grateful that the teacup was a large one or he never could have hidden the grin. He had mentioned tea, mentioned relaxation. But he had _**not**_ mentioned Duo's crazy prognostication or Duo's backrub suggestion.

The look on Wufei s face when he realized that was priceless. Chang's eyes narrowed as he glared at Quatre.

"Winner, you had better _**not**_ be laughing."

The blond Arabian pilot pointed to himself looking the picture of innocence.

The incessant flashing of a light on the com board cut Wufei off mid-threat. _Saved by the signal_. Quatre breathed a tiny prayer of thanks for small favors.

"That's it. Let s move."

Trowa held his arms out away from his sides as they frisked him.

"This is all he is carrying, sir." A black garbed handed Trowa's standard issue semi-automatic and Trowa's faked papers to his superior who was supervising the search.

The officer looked Trowa straight in the eyes. "I see you are Lt. Jake Rand, special ops division, here on a top secret mission. You understand there is nothing personal. The search is standard procedure. Your record is unimpeachable, and I m sure there will be no problems."

"I understand fully, Major."

"Sir...!" An underling ran out of the ship carrying a bag and held out the bag to his Major. The Major held up something very lacy, very feminine.

"Can you explain the presence of this on your vessel, Lieutenant?

Trowa stomach did flip-flops. He had never seen that particular item of clothing before, but he had no doubt who it belonged to. Cathy had left her bag on board, and the searchers had found it. He knew his face was going red which was just as well.

In fact that would make his next statement all-the-more believable.

He cleared his throat. "My... uh... wife, sir, must have left it on board. You see I'm going to be on an unnaturally long mission and, well uh... You know wives, sir."

The Major winked at Trowa and dropped the wisp of lace back into the bag. "That I do, son."

The officer checked the clip on Trowa's confiscated weapon and reinserted it. He handed the gun back to Trowa. "Welcome to Cobra s Nest , Lt. Rand. Report to personnel and get settled in. Unless there are any other special orders, the only thing that might get in the way of your mission is the Morale Meeting. Unfortunately, attendance is required. You understand"

"Yes, sir." Trowa saluted and watched the men return to duty. As the officer saluted, the men under his command turned a sharp about face and marched away from the shuttle.

 _Morale Meeting?_ Trowa's eyebrow rose _Sounds interesting._ He started walking down the corridor towards the personnel department. _First order of business, find that computer room._

Duo slipped nonchalantly up to the tail-end of a rag-tag band of mechanics just going off-shift. His responsibility on this mission would encompass planting explosives for a distraction to get off-base. That and commandeering passage home in the event that the large shuttle was tampered with.

Duo grinned. _Just let 'em try to fiddle on board that baby. It'll give em quite a bang!_

Duo slackened his pace until he was lagging far enough behind to lose the group. He stopped and looked left then right. Something tickled him on the back of his neck and he looked up to see a rope dangling from the vent overhead. The hall was clear, so Duo took advantage of the lull and flew up the rope. A petite feminine hand reached down from inside the shaft and gave the long-haired pilot a hand up.

"Yo, Cat! Right on schedule. Someday you gotta teach me this Hindu rope trick of yours. I swear those vents were thirty feet off the ground." Duo exclaimed as he rewound the rope he had just climbed and handed it back to the brunette. Duo replaced the vent cap just as five black uniformed soldiers walked by.

Cathy winced as she attached the rope to her belt.

"Duo," she said sweetly, "Next time, I get to frolic down the nice roomy hallway while you get to crawl through the cramped, corpse infested air duct." She shuddered.

"I have no idea what you're talkin about." Duo tried for innocent but could not quite pull it off. He just could not keep a straight face.

She stuck her tongue out at him.

Catherine glared as Duo's grin widened. He pulled a palmtop out of his jumpsuit pocket. "The first location is on Level E, Corridor 7. That means we crawl straight for thirty meters and up two levels. Up for a climb? It's a lovely day for it!" Duo winked at her.

She rolled her eyes but grinned. "Let's just get it over with."

Quatre glanced down the corridor. The place was fairly crawling with soldiers. He grinned. "Now, aren't you glad that Duo made you change?"

Wufei snorted derisively but concentrated on his palmtop's readout. "We need to make it to Level C, Corridor 2. There should be an access to a maintenance control panel at the room at the far end of the hall."

 _We'll also need to erase the tapes before we leave._ Wufei snapped his palm top shut and he and Quatre started down the hallway _. Now for a little fun._

Trowa traversed the hallway as if he knew exactly where he was going. The corridor itself was crawling with soldiers. Evidently this base was home stomping grounds for all the Venom soldiers, and it had been up and running for some time.

Trowa glanced left then right and he noticed the set of double doors. He walked by the door, noting the number. _Fifty-seven. Bingo_.

He leaned casually against the wall and closed his eyes affecting a bored stance. No one questioned what he was doing there. To every other soldier, Trowa could have been there simply to meet up with someone. As long as they saw the black uniform belonging to the Venom division, there was no suspicion.

The hall was gradually clearing as more and more soldiers headed to the lifts that would carry them to Level B. Trowa watched them with an indifferent expression. _Probably going to the Morale Meeting._

The hallway cleared and Trowa edged closer to inspect the doors. They had not closed all the way. _Most likely a malfunction_. They were cracked just enough to hear voices filtering through the opening.

From what Trowa could make out, this _**was**_ the computer room. But that was not what interested him. Sitting in a chair in front of one of the com screens was a man of obvious importance. From what Trowa could see of the man s uniform, he was a person of high rank. _Maybe a general? I wish I could see better_. The officer s muted voice carried back to Trowa through the door.

"Dismissed gentlemen. Report back in ten minutes. The officer in question gestured at the four soldiers standing at attention."

The four men crisply saluted and turned towards the door.

Trowa sidled down the hallway a few feet and once again took on his bored posture. The door whooshed open and Trowa heard the footsteps of the four soldiers as the moseyed towards the mess hall. With a casual nodding of heads, they passed Trowa.

"I'm getting a cup of coffee. I don't know about you." The brown haired soldier said to his companions. "I mean come on. When's the last time we had a coffee break?"

"How 'bout never." The black haired soldier chortled. The others' comments were abruptly cut off as the lift doors closed on them. Once again the hallway was empty, and Trowa moved back towards the door.

"-the status of the computer and the weapon, general?" A deep guttural voice with a Slavic accent asked the officer in front of the com.

"My Lord." The general bowed his head and continued. "The super computer is all but finished. Our technicians are estimating its completion by the end of the week."

Trowa's eyes narrowed as he listened. _It s going to take them_ _ **a lot**_ _longer than that by the time we are done with it_. His lips pulled up at the corners.

"Good. Have it ready for transport and instillation on board the battleship. What of the Cannon?" The Russian voice inquired.

"Unfortunately, we've run into a setback. The Preventers intercepted the shipment of alloy that we needed to complete the weapon. We are going to need more. And we are going to need more time, my Lord."

"There _**is**_ no more time, General." The Russian voice fairly dripped with displeasure. "Need I remind you that we are preparing for war? We have finished the first of the new mobile suits and recruitment is at an all time high. We are on a strict timetable, General, and I don t have time to give you."

Trowa's ears perked at that.

"As for the Gundanium ore, wasn't the protection of the shipment your purview? Those guards came from your own soldiers. If your soldiers are so well trained, how could such a pathetic organization as Preventers overcome them?" the Russian stated contemptuously.

"We have reason to believe that the Gundam pilot Chang Wufei had a hand in it. He is just as well if not better trained than my own soldiers." The General shook his head. "Even without his Gundam, he is still a formidable adversary. I'm truly sorry about the loss of the alloy, but if we are to complete the beam cannon, we are going to need more."

Trowa blinked. _**Beam**_ _cannon…?_ He had known that they were building a super weapon , but he had not known the nature of the weapon. Trowa carefully kept his face neutral, but inside alarm bells were clanging away. They were making a beam cannon. What s worse, it was being made out of Gundanium ore.

A beam weapon in itself was terrifying. It worked on a principle of using a laser type beam to ionize particles in the space surrounding it, producing extreme heat. That charged field caused any matter it comes in contact with to become effectively super heated, ripping the object apart.

But the weapon was especially devastating when it was made from Gundanium. The complex alloy allowed the charged particles to reach heat temperatures that would incinerate ordinary metals. Wing Zero's buster rifle was made of gundanium. Heero shot down a huge chunk of the battle station Libra with it and Quatre blew up a whole colony. That was just the _**rifle**_! These boys were building a cannon. _The sheer ramifications_

A sigh echoed over the com. "I will make sure you have what you need. I warn you, my patience grows thin. I will not tolerate incompetence. If you can't perform your duties to the Council's satisfaction, I will find someone who can." The threat was all too plain. "Do _**not**_ fail me, Conrad."

 _Council?!_ Trowa frowned. That did not sound good. Preventers might have a vested interest in the fact that this group is backed by a council .

 _I've heard enough_. Trowa pushed away from the wall and slowly sauntered towards the lift to Level B. The base had to go. The base, the computer, and that cannon.

Trowa was so deeply caught in his thoughts that he failed to hear the sound of footsteps running up behind him.

"Wait!" a feminine voice called out. "Hold that lift!"

Trowa put a hand across the door and held it for the redhead as she screeched to a halt in the lift.

"Thanks!" Her breath came in gasps. She straightened up and smiled at him in a friendly manner. Then she quirked and eyebrow in interest. "Hey... You're _**cute**_!"

Trowa's eyes widened in alarm as she sauntered closer. He took step back, trying to maintain his distance. But how can one maintain distance in a sixteen square-foot lift?

"Don't worry, handsome, I don't bite." She slipped a piece of paper under his shoulder strap. "You look like you're new here. The name's Jeannie. Call me after the morale meeting. I'll show you around, starting with the mess and dinner and ending at my place." She winked at him as the lift doors slid open. "That's extension 461." She waved at him over her shoulder and took off down the hallway.

Trowa pulled the paper out from under his strap. He started walking down the corridor to the auditorium, stopping only for a moment hand some random gentleman the piece of paper. "Jeannie says to give this to you, and asks that you call her after the Meeting. Extension 461."

With that Trowa entered the auditorium.

This had to be the most boring job on base. The three guards in the security rooms never saw any action. So, consequently, no one paid much attention to the monitors.

At that moment, if they were clairvoyant, they might have foreseen and anticipated the base's imminent danger. They would have been alert and on top of things, watching for anything out of the ordinary.

As it so happened, they were neither psychic nor telepathic and so were blissfully unaware of the impending threat. The three guards were thoroughly wrapped up in their card game, only glancing up at the screens every now and again.

"Ha! Read em and weep, boys! Royal Flush!" The guard named Joe fanned his cards out for the other players to see.

"Man! That sinks me. You got me for a weeks pay," said the guard with freckles. The name tag on his uniform said his name was Bill.

"I'm not out yet. C'mon, deal 'em again." The youngster with blue eyes called Berty made himself more comfortable.

"Whatever you say, kid." And the card game went on.

"How many do you want?"

"One." Bill grinned

He picked the card that Joe dealt. Bill looked up from his cards and laughed. "Ha! I got ya this time, Joe." Then he noticed one of the monitors.

"What the..."

"What, Bill?" Joe turned and glanced in the direction that Bill pointed. "The screens for Level C, corridor 2 were completely static." Joe dropped his card hand on the table and headed to the console. He started inputting commands, but everything he tried failed. The most boring job on base just got interesting.

Within a matter of a few minutes, the card game was completely forgotten. Soon the screens for Level C weren't the only screens going out. Oh, it was only one or two at a time, and they only went to static for a few minutes, but it was the most excitement that room had seen since the war games fiasco.

"I don't get it. Why are the monitors on the blink? There's no reason."

"Did you try-"

"Yes, I tried rebooting the system. I tried re-entering my codes. I even tried re-entering commands and routing it through the super computer. It's like everything I try is circumvented before I even attempt it."

And everybody was so caught up with the fact that the machinery was malfunctioning that nobody noticed the pattern emerging. First it was Level C, corridor 3. Then it was Level E, corridor 7. There was only one monitor consistently static. That one was Level C, corridor 2, the security camera that continuously pointed at the maintenance access panel that controlled all the other cameras.

If they could have been successful at wrestling back control, they would have seen a Chinese with a smirk on his face in a black uniform and a blond haired boy in black fiddling with that computer panel.

Trowa stood at attention in a huge seat-less auditorium with at least a thousand similarly dressed soldiers. A man who was introduced as General E.C. Conrad stood on the platform carrying a riding crop. It was obvious to everyone and his brother, judging by Conrad's bearing, he was large and in charge.

Trowa's eyes narrowed. _Well, well. If it isn t my friend from the computer room._

There was no doubt this was the top guy. On the stage behind Conrad, stood two other officers. The Major that welcomed Trowa stood to Conrad's right and on his left, a female commander with an exceptional figure and what looked like a scarlet katana hanging from her hip.

Conrad moved to the podium and raised a hand for silence. "You have heard it said by those in government that the Earth and the colonies uniting is everything desirable. But, I tell you that the Colonial Coalition is nothing but a sham, a yoke of slavery to the colonies in order to bring them closer to heel!" Conrad's baritone echoed through the auditorium.

Trowa had to admit that the man was a dynamic speaker. _He knows how to play a crowd_. Trowa glanced around. The looks of complete faith and loyalty on the faces of those around him made him shudder.

"The Earth Sphere Unified Nation has pledged to allow us our own autonomy, and allow us to build our own economies using our own resources. But, I tell you this is a blatant lie! Remember well that Earth wants those resources and has for the past two-hundred years! The E.S.U.N. hopes to lull us with its promises and then claim those resources for its own!"

That drew a reaction from the soldiers. Trowa could identify with the sentiments of those next to him. If he hadn't know the truth about the E.S.U.N., even he would have bought into this. This guy sounded like he was offering hope for peace for these colonists families.

"The Prime Minister is nothing but a liar and a manipulator who claims to be a Soldier of Peace! I tell you, we are the true soldiers of peace. We are unafraid to give up our homes, our families, and even our lives in order to accomplish our goals!"

A soldier crossed the platform and whispered something in the commander s ear. She rolled her eyes and quietly left the stage.

" _ **We will**_ stand up for our independence and fight to free our brothers who are already enslaved! _**We will**_ lift the cloak of deception from their eyes. I call upon you to deny your friends for their sake. I call upon you to deny your families, to deny yourselves! _**For the sake of freedom**_! Will you build a New World with me?"

A deafening roar went up from the crowd.

 _That's catchy. Nice turn of phrase, except it'll never happen._ Trowa's face fell. _That's right, Trowa, it'll never happen. And this guy will see to it. Why can't these people see this guy for what he is? Why can't they see that Relena is only offering them peace_?

Suddenly, Trowa was tired, oh so tired of the bloodshed, of the never ending cycle of war. He was tired of the constant threat to the peace and tired of being the answer to that threat. At that moment he wanted nothing more than to be an ordinary guy free to love and be loved.

 _But, I can't, can I? I m a Gundam pilot. I'll never be ordinary._ The Perfect Soldier in him hissed.

All of the sudden Trowa heard Duo's voice in the back of his head: _It all comes down to choice, Trowa. Relena's done her best to give us peace, but you are the only one who can make the choice to accept the gift she's given you. Man, from one soldier to another, you'll regret it every day of your life if you choose to pass Cathy up._ _She is worth it._

"Choice..." Trowa murmured. In the midst of the cheering of over a thousand troops, Catherine's features rose before his mind's eye. _Catherine_. In that instant, Trowa decided. _I want a normal life no matter what the cost. I want a home and a family. Duo's right. Catherine is worth it!_

Trowa s eyes narrowed as he glared at the man on the platform. _I will_ _ **personally**_ _ensure that you and this Cobra's Nest of yours prove no obstacle._

Quatre glanced over his shoulder and down the hallway. The number of soldiers had thinned out about a half-hour ago and remained nominal ever since. Still Quatre kept a wary eye out for any activity. He was not about to get caught off guard.

"How's it going, Wufei?" Quatre asked his voice low. He and Wufei were nearly done with the cameras and had already erased the visual data on the computer. Time was of the essence as the second part of their operation would cut it close to the wire as far as the mission timetable was concerned.

"Nearly finished now." Wufei snipped a wire that led in from the hallway cameras. Quatre eyed him as he snipped two more wires. The blond Gundam pilot shook his head. Wufei wasn't wearing that strap correctly. Yes, he had condescended to wearing the enemy army's uniform and the frightening thing was that he looked as if he belonged in them.

All except for that strap. Quatre had offered to show him how it worked but the Chinese Gundam pilot would have none of it.

Quatre glanced down the corridor once again just in time to see two majors walk around the corner. Their heads were bowed in deep conversation and Quatre realized that they had not yet seen him or Wufei.

 _Think fast, Quatre..._ Winner glanced around rapidly a plan taking shape in his mind. It was a desperate bluff, but if his luck held, he just might pull it off. _Thank you, Trowa, for making me an officer of high rank_

He jumped up and made like he was a man on a mission. He marched past Wufei who was completely oblivious to what was happening. Quatre pivoted on his heel directly behind Wufei and yelled at the top of his lungs.

" _ **Attention**_!"

 _Was that_ _ **Winner**_? Wufei's brown-black eyes popped open and he reacted instantly. He jumped up and whirled around wide-eyed. Quatre stood there his bearing and demeanor would have made a drill sergeant tear up with pride. It was so _**un-Quatre-ish**_ Wufei blinked in surprise. "What in... ?!"

"You will speak when spoken to and not before! Is that understood, sergeant?" Quatre sneered in a sharp command. Wufei caught movement in his peripheral and suddenly understood what Quatre was doing. He snapped to looking straight ahead but affected an air of defiance as if to say _**how dare you dress me down**_.

Chang was not the only one who popped into parade ground salute. The two majors stopped dead in their tracks, neither wanting to get involved in the dressing down that they were sure was about to take place. However, they did not exactly dive for cover. They were far too interested in what was going on. And they were not disappointed.

Quatre's eyes narrowed. "Look at the sorry state of your uniform! Is this the respect you show the Venom army? To wear your strap in such a slothful fashion?" He clasped his hands behind his back. "And that arm band is on the _**wrong arm**_ , sergeant. What s the matter, soldier? Mommy not get in to dress you today? "

Wufei's jaw clenched but he continued to stare straight ahead as Quatre glared daggers. "Get that strap on correctly and fix that armband before I put you on report for being out of uniform." Disgust fairly dripped from Quartre's voice.

Quatre whirled suddenly and pinned the two majors with a glower that brooked no arguments. "Isn't there something you could be doing, gentlemen? Because if you're bored, I'm sure I can think of some _**interesting**_ tasks to keep you entertained."

At Quatre's thinly veiled threat, the two majors snapped off a smart salute and double timed it back around the corner in the direction that they had originally come.

Quatre slumped against the wall next to the panel where they had both been working. Gone was the Patton persona that the blond Gundam pilot had assumed and in its place was the softhearted Quatre Raberba Winner that the other pilots had come to know so well. "Sorry about that, Wufei. Especially that comment about your mother."

Wufei's jaw relaxed and he shook his head. "No apology necessary. You preserved the mission and you prevented us from being captured. However since you did apologize, I'll let you live this once." Wufei leaned down and replaced cover of the panel.

Which was just as well. For Wufei did not see the Arabian roll his eyes. _How benevolent of you._ "Come on, Wufei. We still have a mission to complete."

Duo and Catherine had abandoned the vents a while ago in favor of fast movement over stealth. They still had to keep an eye out for soldiers, but they had not seen more than a handful for almost an hour.

"This is where we split up, Cat. Trowa should be along presently." Duo handed Catherine a small disc about two inches across. "Here."

"The virus?" she inquired. Duo nodded at her. She took the disc and walked a few feet away from Duo.

"I'll hang around long enough to see that nothing goes wrong and then..." Duo ceased speaking abruptly.

"Cathy, out of sight! Quick!" He hissed. He glanced over Cathy's shoulder and had seen a handful of soldiers approaching. Duo jumped back into a dark room just as someone noticed Cathy. Unfortunately, she was too far from the door Duo had gone through to follow him.

"Halt or I'll fire!" a sergeant called while pulling his gun. She shoved the virus disk under her belt and whirled around, wide eyed. _They saw me, but did they see Duo?_ _The last thing I want is to give him away._

The soldiers surrounded her and grabbed her arms forcing her hands behind her back. Rough hands searched her removing her rope and bullwhip. They also took her photo of Trowa. _Not my picture!_ It was her favorite picture of Trowa. It was one of the only ones he was actually smiling in. And now she would lose it. _Stupid! Stupid, stupid, stupid! Why did I bring that thing along?_

She mourned the loss of the picture but breathed a sigh of relief when they missed the stilettos hidden in her boots.

"Take her to Cell 4 on Level 7. I ll report to the commander." The sergeant ordered.

"You'll report _**what**_ to the commander, sergeant?" a silky feminine voice purred from behind the sergeant. "You do realize, sergeant, that I am not the only officer on base. I'm only here on short notice to receive orders then I am leaving. So tell me, what is so _**all-fired**_ important that we must report it to the commander, hmm?"

The officer whirled around and saluted woman who had spoken. "I beg to report the capture of a prisoner, Commander Ling. These are her affects, sir."

The commander tilted her head to the side, evaluating Cathy critically. "I see."

Catherine's eyes widened. This woman was stunning! She was Asian with a mix of something else in her. Her midnight- black hair fell in luxurious waves over her shoulders and down her back, and her figure was one any woman would kill to possess. She painted an arresting picture in her jet black uniform.

But her shockingly green eyes were her most striking feature. They seemed to pierce your very soul with the intensity of their gaze.

The Commander took the items and looked at the photo. Her eyes narrowed in for only a fraction of a second. Cathy swore she had imagined it, because, as she looked at the lady officer, Catherine could see no sign of any expression on the commander s face.

"Commander!" a voice called out drawing the attention. A Major approached the group, but his smile dimmed when he saw Catherine. "What's this?"

The sergeant stepped forward and gave his report for a second time.

They handed the major her stuff. He took one look at the photo of Trowa smiling and wearing an antique cross. "I recognize him! He's Lt. Rand!" he looked at Cathy noticed the cross hanging from her neck and smiled. "You must be his wife."

 _Wife?_ Cathy blushed and smiled. _What a thought!_

The Commander's eyebrow rose. This woman had bearing and poise, and knew how to tout it. Ling looked down at the photo again. "Lt. Rand, huh?"

"Yes. He arrived on base today. He said he was going on a dangerous mission. I just wanted-" Cathy s voice trembled.

"Say no more. It's none of these boys' business, anyway." The commander winked at Cathy and rolled her eyes in the men's general direction. "Let's help her out, major. Sergeant, you run and get a ladies uniform," Commander Ling stepped back and ran a critical eye over Cathy s figure. "Size 4. And hurry back! Choppy, Choppy! Major, you give her hubby a call-"

Cathy opened her mouth but Commander Ling shushed Cathy before she could say anything. "-don t thank me, pumpkin! I'd want someone to do the same for me. Especially if I were in your shoes. Carry on, gentlemen."

The commander turned to a nearby lieutenant and Cathy noticed one small detail on her uniform that wasn't on the others. Commander Ling carried a katana that was enameled red and covered in golden phoenixes.

Duo swore and wiped the blood from his mouth. "I'm telling you, Trowa, there wasn't anything I could do. There was no way to grab her and get her out of sight before they saw her. You think I liked just standing there while they captured her?!"

Quatre eyed Trowa anxiously. Usually, his friend was more even tempered.

"You could have stopped them from taking her." Trowa tried to push away from Wufei who held him in a grip like a vice.

Quatre stepped between Duo and Trowa. Quatre spoke in a low but intense voice. "Duo couldn't have done anything and you know it. He was outnumbered five to one. He had no advantage except for the fact that they had not seen him. Think, Trowa! If Duo had gone out there, guns blazing and those soldiers had started shooting back, the very least it would have done would have blown the mission. At most, it could have cost Catherine her life!"

Silence reigned, but Quatre knew his friend. His last statement had turned the trick. Trowa stopped fighting Wufei.

A persistent beeping drew the attention of all four men and Trowa pulled away from Wufei and Trowa pulled his palmtop from his pocket.

"Rand here."

"Lieutenant, report to room 153."

"Yes, Major. "

The screen went black. When it became evident that nothing more was forthcoming, Trowa closed the palmtop. _What else can go wrong?_

Trowa closed his eyes for a moment and got a handle on his emotions. He had a mission to complete. _And rescuing Cathy just became part of it_

"Proceed with the mission. Duo, don t spare the explosive. I want this base rendered completely impotent. Quatre, Wufei, the weapon is a beam cannon. And it's made from gundanium. It is imperative that you take it out at all costs." The pilots glanced at each other. _**Beam cannon?**_ That fact did not bode well.

Trowa continued. "If you don t hear from me, finish your objectives and return to the RV point."

"But, Trowa, that means..." an alarmed Quatre cried.

... _that means you and Cathy will be left behind._ Quatre could not finish the rest of that statement, but they were all thinking it. It hung in the air between them. Trowa made eye contact with Quatre, Duo, and Wufei. "You have your orders."

"And while I am playing demo-squad, what are _**we**_ going to be doing?" Duo wiped the remainder of the blood off his mouth.

Trowa pulled out his semi- automatic, and checked the chamber. "I m going to locate Cathy and if need be, break her out."

Trowa approached the door to room 153 with a little apprehension. This should have been a routine mission. How could things have gone so wrong so fast? His Catherine was a prisoner, held who knows where, and now he had been ordered to report here. _Why?_

He stood outside the door and rang the buzzer. He recognized the Major's voice as he was told to enter. He opened the door and went in.

And stopped abruptly. His eyes widened.

Standing in between the two officers that were on the stage at the Morale Meeting, and in full uniform, was the woman he had just been thinking of.

"Cathy."

"My darling!" she exclaimed as she ran to him and threw her arms around his neck. She kissed him quite thoroughly, fairly knocking the socks off of him. She smiled up at him, and then pouted prettily. "Sweetheart, I know I promised not to be a bother you while you were on base, but I had to see you. A group of soldiers found me and found that photo of you that I carry- you know the one!"

 _She carries a photo of me?_ Trowa raised an eyebrow at her and she blushed.

"Anyway, this nice young man recognized you and helped me find you. Commander Ling even gave me this uniform." at this Cathy pulled away from Trowa and did a 360 as if to show off her new clothes to her 'husband'. "You like?"

His eyes considered her. _Wow, do I like_. He nodded an emphatic _ **yes!**_

Trowa looked at the Asian woman and bowed. "Thank you for taking such good care of my wife." As he straightened he did a double take. _That sword..._

She returned his bow and tapped the Major on the shoulder. "C'mon. Let's give 'em some privacy. You, pumpkin, stay out of trouble." She winked at Cathy and left with the major in tow.

Trowa looked at the door the two officers just left through. "Well this is convenient. Now I don't have to rescue you."

She snorted. He smiled at her.

"Cathy..."

But Catherine was to busy re-attaching her bullwhip and rope to her belt. Trowa gently took hold of her elbow and turned her to look at him.

"From here on, don't use any names." His smoldering gaze bore into her limpid one. "That was well done."

She blushed and grinned. "C'mon, flyboy, we have work to do."

Duo strolled casually into the hanger and right up to the guards on duty. His goal was the wiring access panel behind the soldiers. They were carrying on a conversation and Duo almost got close enough to hear what was said before they noticed him.

"- was that?"

"I didn't hear anything."

"I'm telling you, I distinctly heard something clanking around back there."

Duo glanced in the soldiers direction and noisily rifled through his appropriated toolbox. He started laying out the tools on the floor near the air-conditioning vent just a quick hop from the wiring panel.

"You dope! It's only the mechanic! Hey, You!" the guard hollered at Duo. "You can't be here. This is a restricted area!"

"Yeah, yeah. Keep yer shirt on there, soldier. I'm just here to do my job." Duo raised a placating hand.

"I repeat this is a restricted area. I have orders to shoot any unauthorized personnel."

Duo affected a disgruntled air. "That's fine. I didn't want to fix the AC unit down here anyway!" He started repacking his tools grumbling about people who can't make up their minds. "First some commander tells me that they're griping that it's too hot. Now they tell me that it's restricted and threatened to shoot me for my trouble. Well fine. No repairs done, no positive report for the commander, and no skin off my nose."

"Did you say Commander? Commander Ling?"

Duo dropped the tool back in the toolbox with a resounding CLANG! "Yup. But I'm sure you can explain this to the commander yourselves."

"Hurry up and finish what your doing and clear out!" the soldier and his comrade meandered off toward the large shuttle in the middle of the hanger leaving Duo to his own devices.

 _I wonder who this Commander Ling is._ Whistling a cheerful little ditty, he moved to the wiring access and planted the last of the explosives. _Whoever he is, I owe him one!_

Duo had just finished closing the panel, when he noticed some activity around the shuttle.

Some soldiers and what appeared to be a technician were hauling electronic equipment on board. And they were also carrying a computer.

Duo did the only thing he could have in this situation. He swore and started shopping for a new ride home.

The lengthy corridor widened at its end into a room fairly crawling with scientists and technicians. Quatre and Wufei took up positions on one side of the hall just out of the techs sight.

Wufei nearly whistled out loud as he visually scanned the area. In the very center of the room in sections spread across the room was their objective. It was not hard to find. _The thing was gigantic._ It was bigger than Libra s main cannon or would be when it was complete.

"Wufei, if that thing's made of Gundanium, imagine the devastation it could cause." Quatre glanced at Wufei, a worried expression clouding his features. "I mean I had a double buster rifle when I was in Zero. And I blew up a colony!" Quatre swallowed. That particular memory was not one he wanted to relive. "Why would they need anything so destructive?"

"For an object lesson." Wufei mused, his brown eyes narrowing. "If they fired that thing at earth there would be no planet left."

"They'd do that?!" Quatre leaned back on his haunches shocked. "They'd fire that thing at earth?! Why would anyone want to do that?"

"Easy conquest." Wufei leaned further out to get a better look. "To rule, not through force, but through fear. Think about it, Winner. Once the colonies see what this army is capable of, are they going to stand up against them in a pitched battle? If your home could be destroyed by a madman on a whim and a single press of a button, would you rebel?" Wufei's voice took on a bitter tone.

Quatre eyed his companion. "But these are people _**from**_ the colonies! Would they destroy their own homes and their own families?"

"They don't realize that any of that is going to take place." Wufei shook his head. "All you have to do is study history to see the pattern. A dynamic leader rises and tells a gullible public exactly what they want to hear. He gains a loyal following and begins to insidiously manipulate the rest of the populace. He touches on a deep-set fear or phobia and creates a common enemy that needs destroying. They rise up and war happens. But all of them are fools. They have no idea what is actually happening." He growled under his breath. "And then people like us are needed to put the mad dog down. But not before every innocent soul under his dominion has had everything forcibly stripped away and they are left desolate."

Quatre went silent as he contemplated what Wufei said. _I'm too much of a diplomat._ Quatre believed firmly in talking to resolve issues. To him settling your differences by using a _**gun**_ was inhuman. And while he did fight using Sandrock, he always had done his utmost to preserve innocent lives along the way. What these people where proposing to do was just plain genocidal.

"I think if we only sabotage one of the main components we can cause a cascade that will take out the whole device." Wufei's eyes narrowed in concentration.

"That's awfully risky, Wufei. That requires that those guys actually put this thing together and that they test fire it." Quatre whispered thoughtfully. "Odds are they are going to go over the device carefully before they install it. They very easily could find anything we do to it."

Wufei nodded his head once, acknowledging the truth of what Winner was saying. And then grinned wolfishly. "It would have to be cunningly done. And it would require patience. But imagine what a pleasant surprise it will be when that thing blows up in the faces of its operators taking out most of the army with it."

Quatre still had some reservations about the idea, but he shrugged and gave in to Wufei. "Let's get on with it."

Trowa and Catherine stopped in the hallway just in front of a set of double doors.

"This is the computer room?" Cathy whispered.

Trowa nodded. "Stay here. I'll be back out in a minute..."

The brunette lunged and caught his arm before he could open the doors. "Oh, no you don't, Trowa Barton! Going in there and shooting the place up isn't exactly subtle. Not to mention the computers in there. Certain things in there don't react to well to bullets."

Trowa glanced at Cathy. "You ve got a better idea?"

She tilted her head as if taking something into consideration. "Maybe. Tell me, how many men are behind those doors?"

Trowa looked confused. "When I stopped in earlier, there were four men. Why?"

"Four, huh? Not too many for me to handle." She mumbled under her breath. She flashed a sly grin. "Be right back, flyboy."

Before he could stop her she opened the doors. She strode into the room, moving so that every curve she owned was tantalizingly emphasized. "Hello, boys..."

The door closed on her form and the seductive inflections she was using. Only then did Trowa realize that he had been staring. He rushed to the door when he heard a whip lash and male voices.

 _I'll never forgive myself for letting her go in there! I should have made her stay out here! If she's hurt_ He finally got the door code right. He rushed in, drawing his weapon, and screeched to an abrupt halt. Cathy sat on a console, casually filing a broken nail.

Trowa stood for a moment, thoroughly confused, until he looked over to the left of the door. There sat two very disgruntled gagged and tied soldiers. Trowa glanced and pointed in the soldiers' general direction, and quirked eyebrow.

"Oh, you know. Men. They immediately assume that anything in a skirt would fall for 'em. Yuck! Well these boys won't make the same mistake twice."

Trowa shook his head. Would Cathy never cease to amaze him?

"I thought you said there were four men. Where' d the other two go?"

He glanced down at the hog-tied men.

"That is a very good question. I don't know where the other two went, or when they're coming back so let's get this job done quickly."

"Good idea."

"You're sitting on the console we need to use."

"Oh." She giggled hopped down off the console and pulled the disc out from under her belt.

Trowa set up and began downloading information.

After fifteen minutes of fiddling, Catherine anxiously peered at Trowa. "Has the virus taken?"

"Yes, though that took longer than I would have liked. C'mon. Let's get out of here." Trowa grabbed her hand and turned to the door. "Suddenly the double doors opened, revealing of all people, Conrad flanked by four officers."

Trowa pushed Cathy behind him. _So, it's down to a stand off_. He did not know how he was going to take down all five men and remain standing. He just knew that he could not let them hurt Cathy. _Maybe we won't need to shoot our way out_.

Both Trowa and Catherine were in uniform. Maybe they could bluff it.

Then one of his officers noticed the gagged and bound men.

Trowa pulled his automatic, but before he could fire a shot, three stilettos flew over his shoulder and imbedded themselves in three of Conrad's officers. One officer dove outside the door. That left Conrad.

His eyes blazed with rage as he took aim at Cathy with his automatic. A deafening BANG! rang out and Conrad slumped to the floor in a pool of blood.

Trowa ran past the General's still form without a second glance. He glanced down the corridor, first to the right then to the left.

"The way's clear. C'mon, Cathy."

"Trowa !"

Something in the tone of her voice made his stomach drop out, and he turned back to look at her. Her hands were covering her stomach and there was blood seeping through her fingers. "Trowa..." she murmured again as her legs gave way.

" _ **CATHY!"**_ Trowa swore and dropped to his knees beside her. He had shot Conrad, but not before the general had gotten off a shot of his own. The reason Trowa had not heard it must have been because his shot and Conrad's were simultaneous.

Cathy was fading in and out of consciousness. He checked her wound. "Cathy. No! C'mon, stay with me!"

It was not too bad, but if she did not see a doctor soon, she would lose a lot of blood. "C'mon, Catherine, we've got to get you some medical attention. We're not out of this yet." He packed the wound with his bandana and cut a length of cord to tie around her waist. He needed to keep the constant pressure on that wound.

"Am I going to die, Trowa?" Her breathing came in gasps as she winced.

"What? No! Catherine, you aren't going to die. Not if I have any say in the matter."

"I'm sorry, Trowa. Wufei was right I n-never should have stowed a-away. I'm such a problem…" She hissed through clenched teeth. "I'm just slowing you down fly-boy. L-l-leave me here and get out."

"No." Trowa avoided her eyes as he continued to administer first aid. "I'm not going to leave you. I couldn't if I wanted to." He whispered desperately. He applied some more pressure to Cathy's wound hoping to get her moveable.

"Trowa please! Leave me here." she gritted through the pain then pushed him away. "Just promise me one thing. Promise me you'll get off the base alive."

"Oh, I promise I'll get off alright. _**We both will**_." He met her lavender eyes. "Cathy, will you tell me something? You had the guts it took to follow me into unbelievable danger. Why? Why did you?"

"Isn't it obvious?" she whispered.

Trowa anxiously searched her eyes.

"Catherine, what are you trying to tell me?" The man who spoke so few words finally needed to hear them spoken loudly and clearly.

She smiled at him through her pain. She raised her hand and traced the plane of his face. "I l-love you, Trowa." Her limpid eyes glowed as her fingers traced his jawline. "I have since the day you tried to self-destruct." She laughed, her breath hitching in pain. "You know, I really am a fool. This is who you are. And that won't change. I shouldn't have followed you...But I can't help it. I love you..." She exhaled a ragged breath as herhand fell limp.

His panicked eyes searched her bloodless face. "Cathy!"

He checked for a pulse, terrified at what he would find. There was a pulse, but it was faint. He had to get her medical attention, now!

He scooped up her precious form and took off down the hall at break neck speed in the direction of a nearby shuttle bay. _I can't lose her now._

The corridor around him began to tremble and the sounds of explosions grew closer. Trowa looked behind him with dread. He had just run out of time.

Wufei and Quatre both came to a screeching halt in the shuttle bay.

"Wu-man, Quatre, get down!" There was a muffled _**oof**_ as Duo landed on Quatre and Wufei barely in the nick of time. A huge explosion quaked the hanger and pieces of shuttle flew everywhere.

"Duo, that had better not have been what I think it was." Wufei shoved the braided American off of him, and glanced in the direction that the shuttle _**should have**_ been in. Then he turned his head to glare at Duo. "... _ **Maxwell**_..."

"Wu-man, I swear it's not my fault. Trowa ordered me to!"

"Oh, man!" Quatre groaned. "There goes our ride."

"And Wufei's backrub." Duo shrugged. "I've already pinched us an alternative option."

At the reminder of his partner, Wufei groaned. _**"That woman's going to kill me!"**_

Duo seemed to notice something for the first time, or rather notice something was missing. "Hey, Q-man, where's Trowa and Cat?"

"You mean they're not here?" Quatre asked, wide eyed.

An alarmed Duo shook his head. "We should go find em before-"

Sudden explosions wracked the base, and Duo cursed beneath his breath. "Those bombs are going off two minutes early."

Wufei only arched an eyebrow at Duo. "I trust the transportation you've arranged is slightly more dependable than your knowledge in demolition."

Duo gave Wufei a fairly good imitation of the patented Heero Yuy death-glare.

The sounds of the explosions drew closer and the lights were flickering on and off in the shuttle bay.

"I suggest we get on board." Wufei stated calmly.

"But what about Trowa?" Quatre kept his eyes on the corridor.

"We'll wait as long as we possibly can, but it won't do us any good to die too."

The blackness of space erupted in burning balls of gases and fire. The Cobra's Nest became nothing but a mass of metal fragments and floating debris. In the background of this spectacular show, a spacecraft flew off into the distance.

The hospital room was a sterile white, smelling of antiseptics and medicine.

The petite brunette lay cold and stark on the bed, her eyes closed as if in sleep. It was just an illusion. People wake up from sleep. But Cathy could not wake up. She was in a coma.

Trowa sat by her bedside, his head buried in his hands.

Duo sat in a corner chair, his leg propped over the armrest. He affected a disinterested air but anyone could see the worry in his eyes. He had received the news about Cathy when he, Quatre, and Wufei made Preventers H.Q. Duo hopped the nearest shuttle out, and had not left the hospital since he'd arrived. The others arrived one by one.

Quatre had been in earlier, bringing some reading material and some roses. He could not stay long. He had a diplomatic meeting with the leaders of the colony, but he said he'd be back.

Surprisingly, Sally Po, with a grumbling Wufei in tow, had come to see Cathy. Sally swore it was her idea, but Duo grinned. Wu-man would never admit it, but he was just as concerned about Catherine as Duo was. The Preventers left some time later leaving Duo and Trowa to keep vigil.

Trowa glanced in Duo s direction. "You should get home to Hilde, Duo. You don't have to stay."

"Naw. She knows where I am. Besides, even if she gets mad, she'll eventually forgive me. Cathy is a good friend." Duo stood up and stretched. "I'm going to go get some soda. You want something?"

Trowa shook his head, and Duo exited the room.

"Catherine, wake up please." Trowa sat down in the chair next to her bed, stroking her chestnut hair, begging her to come back to him.

When Trowa had brought her in two weeks ago, she was all but dead. The doctors despaired of saving her, but Trowa stuck by her. Night after night he stayed by her side talking to her, holding her hand. Day after day, he called to her, promising to stay if she would just open her eyes. Going through his mind were the words he had said to Cathy in that computer room _**No, I m not going to leave you. I couldn t if I wanted to.**_

And it was true. Trowa stopped denying it to himself. And after hearing Cathy speak her own heart, he was inexorably caught, and he did not want to get away. He loved her. And now he was so close to losing her.

He bowed his forehead to the bed, beside her still white form. Her chest rose and fell, a testament to the fact that she was still alive.

Behind Trowa's closed eyelids, unshed tears smarted. In his heart burned the knowledge that he had failed her. With that bitter knowledge came another emotion Trowa was unfamiliar with. Helplessness.

 _Cathy, I'm so sorry._

He took her hand in a last ditch effort to reach her and squeezed it. "Catherine...please..."

 _ **Catherine . Catherine . Catherine…**_ Catherine felt numb all over and it was very dark here. Was she dead? She couldn t be unless Unless Trowa was dead too.

 _ **Catherine…**_ There was that voice again. Ooh, it hurt her head. And yet she was being pulled towards it. _Trowa is that you?_ _I feel like I'm falling down a well._ She tried reaching for him. _Trowa!_

T-T-Trowa.

Trowa s eyes popped open and his head jerked up. The dark lashes that had rested on her pale cheeks fluttered open. For the first time in weeks, Trowa saw those beautiful lavender eyes shining up at him. Her limpid gaze met his and she gave him a beautiful smile. Something he'd thought he'd never see again.

Duo walked in carrying a soda can. He took one look at Catherine and let out a whoop, which brought the doctors running. Cathy was on the mend.

It was two days since her release from the hospital, and Cathy had to admit she was glad to be home. She must have been downright crazy to have stowed away.

Funny that the mission seemed so long ago, when in reality it had only been a few weeks.

She smiled as she breathed in the fresh air and gazed at the lovely scenic lake at the bottom of the hill. She had to hand it to him; Trowa knew how to pick a spot for a picnic.

"Admiring the view?" Trowa spoke as he walked up from his pickup truck carrying the picnic basket.

She smiled up at him and nodded. "You bet. I hope you packed plenty of food. I'm starving!"

She dove for the basket he pulled out of her reach.

"Tsk. Tsk. Since when did we get to be greedy?"

"You get put on IV for two weeks and eat hospital food for another. We'll see how hungry you are!" she stuck her tongue out at him.

Trowa was pleased to see her this feisty, and this ravenous. She'd barely eaten anything at the hospital.

They would eat soon enough. But first there something he needed to know. "Before we eat we talk."

She pouted at having to wait to eat and scoffed, "What? The great Mr. If-I-can't-say-it-in-two-words-or-less-then-I-won t-say-it Barton wishes to _**talk**_?" Trowa frowned and she flashed a grin.

He sat down beside her on the blanket, and locked eyes with hers. After a few intense moments, Cathy looked away blushing.

Trowa admired her, noting the rosy tinge in her cheeks and the sparkle in her eyes. _Good Lord! That woman is beautiful!_

"You've had some things on your mind. What are they?" Trowa's eyes bore into her.

Her grin took on a nervous cast and she began to fidget with a blade of grass she'd picked.

"Cathy." He tenderly caught her chin and forced her to meet his gaze.

"I don't know..." Her voice faded and she absently picked a blade of grass. She sighed and then tried again. "I-I don't remember what happened af-fter-" she swallowed hard. "After that maniac shot me. A lot of it's still pretty hazy." She looked down at the blade of grass she was absently tearing to shreds.

Trowa understood her hesitation. It had to be traumatic. He would not want to talk about it either.

"You became unconscious rather quickly." He gently took her hand in his own. She looked up at him and then dropped her gaze. "I picked you up and headed back to the RV point when the corridor behind me started to explode. There wasn't time to make it to the main hanger. I had to keep moving to stay ahead of the explosions. Then I remembered a smaller secondary hanger outlined in the schematics of the base. There were two or three shuttles- probably for Conrad's use in case of emergencies. I took one."

He squeezed her hand. "We barely managed to make it out with our lives. Luckily, L4 colony was in the vicinity or I might have lost you."

She looked up sharply at the change in his tone. She studied his face, but all she saw was an expressionless mask. Her eyes narrowed slightly. She could have sworn his voice had actually broken.

He let go of her hand ignoring her silent question and just handed her the basket. Catherine perked up at the thought of food.

She opened the basket and there on top of the food was a gorgeous lily. She gasped in surprise at the beautiful flower and looked up and met Trowa s eyes.

" _ **That's**_ why you insisted on packing the food yourself." He gave her a ghost of a smile. Beaming, she shook her head and smelled the flower. "That was sweet of you." It was just what was needed to brighten her day.

She stuck the lily behind her ear and started pulling out some sandwiches and the potato salad. She opened the basket once more to be certain she left nothing in there and froze.

Her hand had brushed something soft and fuzzy. She reached in and pulled out a square velvet box

"What-?"

Trowa could not help himself. He grinned at her poor bewildered face. She took the box out of basket and sat looking at it. Then she looked askance at Trowa.

"Open it." He murmured gently. She looked uncertain. Finally curiosity got the best of her and she opened it. And very nearly passed out.

In the center of the velvet box was the most radiant diamond she had ever seen. The setting was magnificent in white gold with starbursts etched into the ring shanks. It was spectacular.

She looked from the ring to Trowa for some explanation afraid to believe this meant what she thought it did.

"Catherine, at the beginning of the mission I never anticipated that we would have gone through what we did. I had no idea what I was leaving behind until you followed me. I couldn't believe it when you tumbled from that closet. I was and am proud of your capabilities. You saved my life at risk of your own. But when you were shot-" He looked away from her unable to go on. She took his hand, forcing him to meet her eyes. "When you were shot, I thought I lost you. You touched me and told me you loved me. My heart broke because I thought you wouldn't survive."

"I told you that?"

"Yes." In that moment Trowa looked unsure, as if afraid to believe it. "Did you mean it?

 _Did I mean it?_ Catherine searched her heart. Life with Trowa was interesting at times and frightening at others. But Cathy couldn't imagine a life without him. She did not even want to. A sudden light came into her eyes. "With all my heart."

That got her kissed quite profoundly.

Trowa's uncertainty vanished. This was what had been missing from his life: the feeling of home. She had become the joy in his life. "I love you Cathy." Trowa closed his eyes and took in a breath. Then he opened them and met her gaze unflinchingly. "Will you marry me?"

Her breath caught in her throat. Then she smiled at him as radiantly as the diamond in that ring sparkled. She slipped the ring on her finger. "Of course I will."

Trowa reached a hand up and gently brushed his fingers down her face. He leaned down brushing her lips with his.

As he pulled back, she sighed in contentment. "Trowa?"

"Hmmm?"

"I don't know how to tell you this but-"

"Yes?"

She smiled impishly. "Your knee is in the potato salad."

Trowa looked down. So it was. He laughed.

Maybe the Perfect soldier in Trowa could find solace off the battlefield. Maybe Trowa could find peace after all.

SPLAT! Potato salad covered half of his face. He raised an eyebrow at Cathy who was doing her utmost to maintain an innocent expression. But it is really quite difficult to look innocent with one's hand covered in potato salad. Cathy saw the prepare to return fire expression on Trowa's face and took off down the hill laughing. The chase was on.

Hmm perfect peace...Then again...

Finis

Epilogue

Somewhere in the blackness of space in a poshly decorated room a strange meeting was taking place.

The circular room was low lit with dark heavy fabrics hanging from the walls. Around the room behind five seats hung a tapestry, each emblazoned with what appeared to be a family crest of the type seen in aristocratic families of pre-colonial Earth. Five men, all of them from ancient aristocratic families were taking their seats.

The dark-haired Russian climbed a dais and sounded the gavel. The room quieted down as the Russian Count Khrushchev laid down the gavel and fiddled with a monitor next to him.

"Gentlemen, I have one of our intelligence operative on line, if you will all turn on your coms. He will give us his report on what happened to our base and super computer." Count Khrushchev called from his seat on the dais. As one all four of the other men turned on their screens.

"Very good. Proceed 195."

195 came into sharp focus on the screen. His crisp black uniform identified him as one of the army's elite Venom. He looked as though he had just showered but his squeaky clean appearance did nothing to disguise the finely etched lines of fatigue on his face. He saluted smartly.

"Sir! I'm sorry to report the complete loss of the facility."

"Everything?" The staunch British Lord Ashcroft exclaimed the din of the other Lords voices. "Including the Cannon?!"

"Gentlemen, please!" The Count held up a hand to silence the murmur of displeasure and alarm that encompassed the room. "Continue, 195."

"No sir. The Cannon sections have been salvaged and they are intact. The gundanium appears to have protected the delicate and irreplaceable parts."

The cannon was safe. A collective sigh of relief passed around the room.

"What of the base? How did its destruction come about?" The Japanese Lord Yamoto serenely inquired.

"It looks to be sabotage, sir. Whoever did it knew exactly where to hit us to make it hurt the most. And, sir," the agent paused and made eye contact, emphasizing his point. "We have reason to believe that the perpetrators may have been one or more Gundam Pilots."

"I trust there is proof to back up that statement?" The staunch German Baron Kreugman interrupted. The noise in the room skyrocketed at that statement. Once again, the gavel sounded from the dais

"Explain, 195."

"Yes, sir, just bear with me a moment. The super computer was all but destroyed in the blast, but there were still elements of it designed to survive almost any thing. When we hooked up with another computer for data retrieval, we were only able to retrieve nonsensical information. Not only that, but an hour later, the computer used in the data retrieval was decimated by a virus the likes of which I've never seen. We've had our brightest men try to write a program to combat the thing. They told us if they worked round the clock for the next twenty years, they might be able to crack the first line of sequencing, but by that time it will have changed one hundred trillion times. I know of only five people alive who could come up with a program of this type of sophistication."

"Most interesting." The rather aged, wizened looking Lord Yamoto mused. "Is it possible that we have such distinguished adversaries as the X-Gundam Pilots?"

"But that is still not proof of those individuals taking an active part in the bases destruction." My Lord Ashcroft, of the ancient order of English Aristocracy, asserted. "I will admit that a virus of that proportion and propensity does make me lean in the direction that the saboteurs are getting outside help. You had better be blamed sure. If, in the event that Gundam Pilots are involved, we are going to have to deal with them. If they are not involved I would just as soon leave sleeping dogs lie."

"Gentlemen, we have interrupted 195's report. I trust he has more than just the virus to warrant the accusation."

"The original data from the security cameras was irretrievable as it was in all probability erased. In any event, the destruction of the base made the security camera option all but hopeless. But we have the data from the black box recorders. I've prepared a short sequence of video feed. I'll leave it for you to decide, sirs."

Across the monitors at five separate seats flashed a tape showing a Chinese man with a black pony tale. Next to him stood a light haired individual in a black uniform. One would have to be blind not to recognize the blond-haired Quatre Winner.

"Quatre Raberba Winner, owner of the Winner Foundation, and Chang Wufei, Preventer." The Japanese aristocrat Lord Yamoto hissed in satisfaction. All five men watched in silence until the visage of 195 returned to the screen.

195 s features reappeared on the screen. "There is just one more thing, sir. General Conrad survived the explosion, but was severely wounded. He's being treated for a gunshot wound."

The men in the room looked at each other significantly. "That is _**unfortunate**_. 195, he mustn't survive."

"Sir?"

"He failed at his duty. I want you to, how shall I say this, _**arrange an accident**_ for him."

195 looked uncertain. "Uh... What kind of _**accident**_ , sir?"

"The kind with _**extreme**_ prejudice."

"Yes, sir, but do you have a preference how it is done?"

"We'll leave that to you. Is there anything else you wish to add?"

"No, sir."

Lord Yamoto spoke up from his seat in that casual way that so marked him. "Your deduction concerning the Gundam Pilots involvement was a good one. You have a quick mind. Tell me, whom do I have the honor of addressing?"

"Lieutenant Jake Rand, Special Ops."

"Thank you, Lieutenant."

Rand signed off. Count Khrushchev looked at his colleagues. "Well, gentlemen?"

"Well, Count?" Yamoto steepled his fingers and echoed Khrushchev's question. "It would appear that we have a problem of no small proportion."

"There's no doubt about it, the Gundam boys were involved. The question remains what are we going to do about it ?" Stated the French Marquise Rene.

"I find it deucedly interesting that this Chang fellow was in on the raid. He's with the Preventers. That's a direct tie-in with Relena Darlian." speculated Lord Ashcroft. "We need to re-evaluate our position, gentlemen. We need to consider just how much the Prime Minister knows. We may even need to move up the time table."

"I disagree." The German Baron Kreugman spoke up. "We need only to re-double our efforts to discredit her. Our main concern should be this attack upon our facility. If these young Pilots are allowed to continue, they could undermine our entire operation. I am unwilling that our so carefully laid plans for revenge on Relena Darlian be allowed to wither. I say we deal with the Gundam Pilots first."

"That in itself will not be easy." Yamoto's calm Asian tones reasoned. "Those young men are highly trained, capable warriors. You will not be able to destroy them if they are working in tangent. We saw that much in the Battle for Libra."

Yamoto held the attention of the other men. He had a point.

"So we must employ a divide and conquer tactic." mused the staunch German.

"First, we must locate them." The Frenchman pointed out. "And, if I may remind this distinguished Council of Five, that won't exactly prove easy."

"Gentlemen!" Yamoto raised a hand for attention, and the others fell silent. "I propose we start with the ones we can first locate. Chang Wufei works with the Preventers and is often seen on base. Quatre Raberba Winner is a diplomat and so is often seen over the news. He also has a weakness in the person of Dorothy Catalonia. And, while the Japanese boy's current whereabouts are unknown, it is a proven fact that if the Prime Minister is in danger he inevitably shows his smug face. The American is a mechanic, and, if I recall correctly, has a rather charming wife that is exploitable. The other Pilot, if my sources are to be trusted, works at a traveling circus. You see, it is not impossible to locate your targets, and more importantly their weaknesses."

"You know Chang's weakness?" The smirking sarcastic Frenchman inquired. "The man hates women, therefore has no relationships. He's unbelievably arrogant, consequently has no friends. He is-"

"In a word, Oriental." The German interjected sarcastically.

"Gentlemen, gentlemen," Yamoto graciously ignored Kreugman s slight. "When there is no weakness, you _**create**_ one. After all, he _**is**_ a man."

The other four stared intently at the serene Japanese lord.

"With the Council's blessing, I would like the pleasure of dealing with Chang in my own way and in my own time. It would amuse me greatly to discover just what this Chang Wufei is made of." Yamoto's smile held a cruel malice.

"Then we are agreed. The Gundam Pilots must be destroyed." The Russian spoke from the dais. "Yamoto, Chang is yours."

The elderly oriental bowed his head in acknowledgement.

"With that, this meeting of The Council of Five is adjourned."

To be continued...

36


End file.
